Connect with us
toyota bz4x toyota bz4x

News

Toyota highlights gas engine project as ‘practical’ path to carbon neutrality

Credit: Toyota

Published

on

Toyota has had a long history of speaking out against an all-out transition to electric vehicles (EVs), continually pointing to hydrogen technology and continued gas vehicle production as important pieces of the puzzle. In a recent statement, a Toyota chairman referenced a new project for the automaker, and while he didn’t share details, he did emphasize how hybrids and internal combustion engines (ICE) “still play a role” in reaching carbon neutrality goals.

After Toyota boosted its 2025 battery-electric vehicle (BEV) production forecast in November, the company later that month said that it expects to produce more hydrogen cars than its recently announced solid-state EVs by 2030. On Friday, former Toyota CEO and current chairman Akio Toyoda said that the automaker has gained approval from executives to start a project to “promote engine development anew,” with messaging on high-performance ICEs expected to play a big role for the company in 2024, according to Automotive News.

“There is still a role for engines as a practical means of achieving carbon neutrality,” Toyoda said on Friday during the Tokyo Auto Salon conference. “So, let us refine engine technology.”

Toyoda says that he was given approval from current Toyota CEO Koji Sato and other members of the executive body to follow through on the project. While he didn’t provide any further details on the initiative, he reiterated themes around BEV adoption that he has echoed through much of his career, highlighting hydrogen and the need for a smooth social shift to electrification.

Advertisement

“Battery electric vehicles do not represent the only way to achieve carbon neutrality,” Toyoda added. “Should we not all have enthusiasm for cars as we take on the challenge.”

Through advanced combustion engine development, Toyota still hopes to help fight carbon emissions while also helping to preserve jobs for those currently in ICE manufacturing, according to Toyoda. He said that many of the roughly 5.5 million people in Japan’s important automotive sector currently rely on part production for ICE vehicles.

“These people support Japan and have the skills to make the Japan of tomorrow strong. We must never lose these people,” Toyoda said. “To all those who have made engines up until now, let us continue to make engines… I will never let all the work you have all done so far go to waste.”

Toyota has had a fairly long history of vouching for a gradual transition to battery electric tech, and generally holding off on an “EV-only” approach to electrification—despite being the hybrid pioneer that developed the Prius.

Advertisement

In May, Toyota sent a document to dealerships highlighting what the company considered three major barriers to widespread BEV adoption. Toyota wrote that the first major barrier was the impossible demand for critical minerals needed to make EV batteries, while the lack of charging infrastructure and affordability were the other two.

The document elicited a response from Tesla Vice President of Investor Relations Martin Viecha, who debunked the claims, saying, “How is this a real document?”

In 2021, a New York Times report also depicted how a Toyota executive had lobbied against an aggressive electrification strategy in a meeting with U.S. congressional staff, as part of larger, worldwide efforts to reject stricter regulations in the U.S. the European Union, the United Kingdom, Japan, India, and Australia, among others still. The automaker’s slow-paced approach to electrification was also defended by the White House last year.

Toyota sets goal to sell 1.5 million BEV units by 2026

What are your thoughts? Let me know at zach@teslarati.com, find me on X at @zacharyvisconti, or send your tips to us at tips@teslarati.com.

Advertisement

Zach is a renewable energy reporter who has been covering electric vehicles since 2020. He grew up in Fremont, California, and he currently lives in Colorado. His work has appeared in the Chicago Tribune, KRON4 San Francisco, FOX31 Denver, InsideEVs, CleanTechnica, and many other publications. When he isn't covering Tesla or other EV companies, you can find him writing and performing music, drinking a good cup of coffee, or hanging out with his cats, Banks and Freddie. Reach out at zach@teslarati.com, find him on X at @zacharyvisconti, or send us tips at tips@teslarati.com.

Advertisement
Comments

Elon Musk

Tesla to a $100T market cap? Elon Musk’s response may shock you

Published

on

tesla elon musk

There are a lot of Tesla bulls out there who have astronomical expectations for the company, especially as its arm of reach has gone well past automotive and energy and entered artificial intelligence and robotics.

However, some of the most bullish Tesla investors believe the company could become worth $100 trillion, and CEO Elon Musk does not believe that number is completely out of the question, even if it sounds almost ridiculous.

To put that number into perspective, the top ten most valuable companies in the world — NVIDIA, Apple, Alphabet, Microsoft, Amazon, TSMC, Meta, Saudi Aramco, Broadcom, and Tesla — are worth roughly $26 trillion.

Will Tesla join the fold? Predicting a triple merger with SpaceX and xAI

Advertisement

Cathie Wood of ARK Invest believes the number is reasonable considering Tesla’s long-reaching industry ambitions:

“…in the world of AI, what do you have to have to win? You have to have proprietary data, and think about all the proprietary data he has, different kinds of proprietary data. Tesla, the language of the road; Neuralink, multiomics data; nobody else has that data. X, nobody else has that data either. I could see $100 trillion. I think it’s going to happen because of convergence. I think Tesla is the leading candidate [for $100 trillion] for the reason I just said.”

Musk said late last year that all of his companies seem to be “heading toward convergence,” and it’s started to come to fruition. Tesla invested in xAI, as revealed in its Q4 Earnings Shareholder Deck, and SpaceX recently acquired xAI, marking the first step in the potential for a massive umbrella of companies under Musk’s watch.

SpaceX officially acquires xAI, merging rockets with AI expertise

Advertisement

Now that it is happening, it seems Musk is even more enthusiastic about a massive valuation that would swell to nearly four-times the value of the top ten most valuable companies in the world currently, as he said on X, the idea of a $100 trillion valuation is “not impossible.”

Tesla is not just a car company. With its many projects, including the launch of Robotaxi, the progress of the Optimus robot, and its AI ambitions, it has the potential to continue gaining value at an accelerating rate.

Advertisement

Musk’s comments show his confidence in Tesla’s numerous projects, especially as some begin to mature and some head toward their initial stages.

Continue Reading

Elon Musk

Celebrating SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy Tesla Roadster launch, seven years later (Op-Ed)

Seven years later, the question is no longer “What if this works?” It’s “How far does this go?”

Published

on

SpaceX's first Falcon Heavy launch also happened to be a strategic and successful test of Falcon upper stage coast capabilities. (SpaceX)

When Falcon Heavy lifted off in February 2018 with Elon Musk’s personal Tesla Roadster as its payload, SpaceX was at a much different place. So was Tesla. It was unclear whether Falcon Heavy was feasible at all, and Tesla was in the depths of Model 3 production hell.

At the time, Tesla’s market capitalization hovered around $55–60 billion, an amount critics argued was already grossly overvalued. SpaceX, on the other hand, was an aggressive private launch provider known for taking risks that traditional aerospace companies avoided.

The Roadster launch was bold by design. Falcon Heavy’s maiden mission carried no paying payload, no government satellite, just a car drifting past Earth with David Bowie playing in the background. To many, it looked like a stunt. For Elon Musk and the SpaceX team, it was a bold statement: there should be some things in the world that simply inspire people.

Inspire it did, and seven years later, SpaceX and Tesla’s results speak for themselves.

Advertisement
Credit: SpaceX

Today, Tesla is the world’s most valuable automaker, with a market capitalization of roughly $1.54 trillion. The Model Y has become the best-selling car in the world by volume for three consecutive years, a scenario that would have sounded insane in 2018. Tesla has also pushed autonomy to a point where its vehicles can navigate complex real-world environments using vision alone.

And then there is Optimus. What began as a literal man in a suit has evolved into a humanoid robot program that Musk now describes as potential Von Neumann machines: systems capable of building civilizations beyond Earth. Whether that vision takes decades or less, one thing is evident: Tesla is no longer just a car company. It is positioning itself at the intersection of AI, robotics, and manufacturing.

SpaceX’s trajectory has been just as dramatic.

The Falcon 9 has become the undisputed workhorse of the global launch industry, having completed more than 600 missions to date. Of those, SpaceX has successfully landed a Falcon booster more than 560 times. The Falcon 9 flies more often than all other active launch vehicles combined, routinely lifting off multiple times per week.

Falcon Heavy successfully clears the tower after its maiden launch, February 6, 2018. (Tom Cross)

Falcon 9 has ferried astronauts to and from the International Space Station via Crew Dragon, restored U.S. human spaceflight capability, and even stepped in to safely return NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams when circumstances demanded it.

Starlink, once a controversial idea, now dominates the satellite communications industry, providing broadband connectivity across the globe and reshaping how space-based networks are deployed. SpaceX itself, following its merger with xAI, is now valued at roughly $1.25 trillion and is widely expected to pursue what could become the largest IPO in history.

Advertisement

And then there is Starship, Elon Musk’s fully reusable launch system designed not just to reach orbit, but to make humans multiplanetary. In 2018, the idea was still aspirational. Today, it is under active development, flight-tested in public view, and central to NASA’s future lunar plans.

In hindsight, Falcon Heavy’s maiden flight with Elon Musk’s personal Tesla Roadster was never really about a car in space. It was a signal that SpaceX and Tesla were willing to think bigger, move faster, and accept risks others wouldn’t.

The Roadster is still out there, orbiting the Sun. Seven years later, the question is no longer “What if this works?” It’s “How far does this go?”

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Energy

Tesla launches Cybertruck vehicle-to-grid program in Texas

The initiative was announced by the official Tesla Energy account on social media platform X.

Published

on

Credit: Tesla

Tesla has launched a vehicle-to-grid (V2G) program in Texas, allowing eligible Cybertruck owners to send energy back to the grid during high-demand events and receive compensation on their utility bills. 

The initiative, dubbed Powershare Grid Support, was announced by the official Tesla Energy account on social media platform X.

Texas’ Cybertruck V2G program

In its post on X, Tesla Energy confirmed that vehicle-to-grid functionality is “coming soon,” starting with select Texas markets. Under the new Powershare Grid Support program, owners of the Cybertruck equipped with Powershare home backup hardware can opt in through the Tesla app and participate in short-notice grid stress events.

During these events, the Cybertruck automatically discharges excess energy back to the grid, supporting local utilities such as CenterPoint Energy and Oncor. In return, participants receive compensation in the form of bill credits. Tesla noted that the program is currently invitation-only as part of an early adopter rollout.

Advertisement

The launch builds on the Cybertruck’s existing Powershare capability, which allows the vehicle to provide up to 11.5 kW of power for home backup. Tesla added that the program is expected to expand to California next, with eligibility tied to utilities such as PG&E, SCE, and SDG&E.

Powershare Grid Support

To participate in Texas, Cybertruck owners must live in areas served by CenterPoint Energy or Oncor, have Powershare equipment installed, enroll in the Tesla Electric Drive plan, and opt in through the Tesla app. Once enrolled, vehicles would be able to contribute power during high-demand events, helping stabilize the grid.

Tesla noted that events may occur with little notice, so participants are encouraged to keep their Cybertrucks plugged in when at home and to manage their discharge limits based on personal needs. Compensation varies depending on the electricity plan, similar to how Powerwall owners in some regions have earned substantial credits by participating in Virtual Power Plant (VPP) programs.

Continue Reading